Movie Review: Mine Games (2014)

 

When I chose to click on the link to watch Mine Games, I was sort of expecting that I would be turning it off after a few minutes. I didn't have much hope for it, mostly based on the slightly cheesy title, the uninspiring poster art, and the familiar-sounding plot. But though the basic idea behind Mine Games is not the most original, this simple film is wonderfully executed and not as run-of-the-mill as you might think.

A group of friends who have just graduated college travel deep in the woods to spend the weekend at an uncle's house. They discover an old abandoned mine and decide to go exploring, which sets off a series of strange events that has them seeing and experiencing odd things that they have to figure out in order to get out of the woods alive.

Things start off nice and quick with the familiar setup you've seen a thousand times over. However, this is definitely a case where you really have to stick with the movie and give it a chance because by the time things really get started, neither the plot nor the characters are at all like what they started out to be. The editing in the first 20 minutes or so is sometimes a bit choppy with too-quick transitions, but eventually the movie finds its flow. The time loop angle of the plot (think Triangle, if you've seen it) is all about timing, and when to reveal and when to refrain from revealing certain things, and they really got things like that right in this film.

Easily the most accessible and respectful thing about Mine Games is the characters and how they change as the story goes on. The group of hot young things in this flick are both typical and not-so-typical of similar "cabin in the woods" stories - there's a hippie chick, a kind of ditzy girl, and my least favorite, a douchebag whose focus for the weekend seems to only be on drinking beer, plus some others. Once the interesting stuff really starts, though, all of these characters completely flip from my initial reaction, and actually my least favorite character in the beginning ended up being my favorite character - Lex.

In that same respect, I have to give a lot of kudos for the actors for the way they handled the material. Joseph Cross (another Law and Order: SVU alum that I recognize! I need to stop with the reruns of that show, seriously) plays the role of Michael, which was probably the most difficult one to do. A couple of the other male characters are not featured as much, which makes them seem like random extras. Seriously, I don't even remember their names. The female characters are very likable and even relatable - though Rose was the only slightly irritating one because of her supposed supernatural affiliations and all the weirdness that comes from that. On the other hand, though, her character being able to see spirits brings about some of the movie's cool makeup effects so I guess that makes it worth it.

The movie handles the time loop aspect well, though the reasoning for the time loop is not fully explained, and it is mostly left up to the viewer to believe the explanation that works for them. They bring in a lot of different possibilities for what is happening without straight out saying which is responsible - the group sees an aurora borealis, they see references to the Ouroboros in the mine, one of the characters is schizophrenic. I'm still a bit iffy about how I feel about the twist, but at least it did make for a cool ending and pretty awesome final shot. The sound of the hissing snake was another cool thing the filmmakers did to go with the Ouroboros thing and make the mine feel even creepier than it already was.

Mine Games is a cleverly crafted film even with its somewhat difficult storyline. However, it is executed with a nice, subtle genius and doesn't have to do much to be effective for the audience. A very cool surprise from a movie I didn't know anything about five minutes before I watched it!

Mine Games is currently scheduled for a DVD release on October 21, 2014. Thanks to October Coast PR for sending me the link to the screener! Watch the trailer below.